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Word Lens: Real-Time Translation via Augmented Reality

Real-time translation and augmented reality have been among 2010's hottest topics. Now, one app is marrying the two. Word Lens is a real-time translation app that turns your iPhone into "the dictionary of the future," using optical character recognition and augmented reality to translate text.

The app is free in the iTunes Store, with various language pairs available for in-app purchase. The first pair released is Spanish-English, with more coming soon.

Maria Popova is the editor of Brain Pickings, a curated inventory of miscellaneous interestingness. She writes for Wired UK, GOOD Magazine, Design Observer and Huffington Post, and spends a shameful amount of time on Twitter.